System and method for media content deliver

Abstract

A system and method for media content delivery is described. One implementation of the system and method allows for interactive services to be ordered and delivered to a limited-capability set-top box. A gateway unit receives interactive service commands from the remote control of the set-top box through one communication path (such as a wireless path) and relays those commands to a media content network. The media content network then delivers media content in response to the interactive service commands through another communication path (such as a wired path).

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for controlling media content delivery to an electronic device, the system comprising:
 a remote control configured to transmit commands via a first communication path;   a gateway unit configured to receive the transmitted commands via the first communication path and relay the commands to a media content network; and   an adapter configured to receive media content from the media content network via a second communication path and providing the content to the electronic device, the remote control being paired for communication with the adapter.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the adapter is configured to convert the received media content from a quadrature amplitude modulation format to a high definition television format and provide the converted content to the electronic device. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the remote control is further configured to transmit an identification code that identifies the remote control to the media content network, the remote control identification code being transmitted to the media content network by the gateway unit. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the adapter comprises a one-way converter incapable of transmitting requests for the media content to the media content network. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a headend device located remotely from the gateway unit and the adapter, the headend device comprising a memory having stored thereon a data structure that correlates the remote control with the adapter. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the headend device is integrated with the media content network and is configured to transmit the media content from the media content network to the adapter. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a headend device located remotely from the gateway unit and the adapter, the headend device having the media content stored thereon. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the electronic device is a television, and the adapter is configured to receive the media content via an on-demand channel. 
     
     
         9 . A method for controlling media content delivery to an electronic device, the method comprising:
 associating a remote control with a digital transport adapter;   receiving, at a location remote from the digital transport adapter, a command from the remote control unit via a first communication path; and,   in response to the received command, transmitting media content to the digital transport adapter via a second communication path.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the digital transport adapter is one of a plurality of digital transport adapters, the method further comprising:
 storing data representing the association between the remote control and the digital transport adapter in a data structure;   receiving, at the remote location, an identification code from the remote control; and   referencing the data structure using the identification code to distinguish the digital transport adapter from the plurality of digital transport adapters.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the remote location is a cable headend facility and the media content is on-demand video. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the first communication path is a wireless radio frequency communication path and the second communication path is a wired communication path. 
     
     
         13 . A system for enabling video on demand, the system comprising:
 a digital transport adapter communicatively linked with a media content network, the digital transport adapter configured to receive video content from the media content network and deliver the video content to a video display device, but incapable of transmitting requests for the video content to the media content network;   a remote control configured to transmit requests for the video content and to control the operation of the digital transport adapter; and   a gateway unit configured to receive the transmitted requests and relay the received requests to the media content network.   
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the digital transport adapter comprises a converter configured to convert the received video content from a quadrature amplitude modulated format to a high-definition multimedia interface format and deliver the converted video content to the video display device. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the gateway unit is further configured to receive the transmitted requests via a wireless communication medium and relay the received requests via a wired communication medium. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 13 , further comprising a network interface having a network address, wherein the network interface is configured to receive the relayed requests from the gateway unit, add the network address to the requests, and transmit the requests to the media content network. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 13 , further comprising a headend device integrated with the video content network, the headend device comprising a memory having the video content stored therein, the headend device being configured to send the video content from the video content network. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 13 , further comprising a headend device comprising a memory, the memory having stored thereon a data structure that correlates the remote control with the digital transport adapter,
 wherein the remote control is further configured to transmit a code that identifies the remote control, and   wherein the headend device is configured to use the code to reference the data structure to determine the identity of the digital transport adapter.   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18 , further comprising a network interface having a network address,
 wherein the network interface is configured to receive the relayed requests from the gateway unit, add the network address to the requests, and transmit the requests to the media content network, and   wherein the headend device is further configured to use the code to reference the data structure to determine the network address.   
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 13 ,
 wherein the digital transport adapter comprises a digital to analog adapter configured to convert the video content from a digital format to an analog format and deliver the converted video content to the video display unit,   wherein the media content network is a cable television network, and   wherein the digital transport adapter and the gateway unit are located at the premises of a subscriber of the cable television network.